Canadian National – Page 17

CN Board of Directors Recognizes Outgoing President and CEO, E. Hunter Harrison

December 23, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

MONTREAL — David G. A. McLean, chairman of the board of directors of CN, acknowledged the remarkable career of CN’s outgoing president and chief executive officer E. Hunter Harrison. “On behalf of CN’s board of directors, I would like to thank Hunter for the outstanding leadership and service that he has provided to this company. His innovative Precision Railroading model and tireless dedication has led to the creation of a great North American railroad and will leave this company well positioned for future success,” said McLean. “As Hunter prepares to step down from the company and from its board of directors, we extend our profound gratitude for what he has

Metrolinx Acquires Full Ownership of Toronto-Barrie Rail Commuter Corridor

December 15, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

Metrolinx purchased from CN the lower portion of the Newmarket Subdivision in central-north Toronto for C$68 million.

Arbitrator to Decide Wage and Benefit Issues for CN Locomotive Engineers

December 13, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

MONTREAL — Unresolved wage and benefits issues for 1,700 CN locomotive engineers in Canada will be submitted to binding arbitration after renewed negotiations between the company and Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) ended yesterday without a settlement. The company and union agreed, as part of the memorandum of settlement that ended the TCRC’s strike Dec. 2 to third-party arbitration of wage and benefits issues if further talks failed to resolve their contractual differences. The federal Minister of Labour will now appoint an arbitrator, who will have 90 days following his or her appointment to report to the Minister with a final decision on a new collective agreement. Nothing precludes CN

CN Signs Voluntary Mitigation Agreement with Village of Plainfield, Ill.

December 9, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

CHICAGO — CN announced it has reached a voluntary mitigation agreement (VMA) with the Village of Plainfield, Ill., located 35 miles southwest of Chicago, addressing the municipality’s environmental issues with CN’s acquisition of the principal lines of the former Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway Company (EJ&E). With this agreement, CN has VMAs with 21 municipalities of the 33 communities situated on the EJ&E in Illinois and Indiana. CN’s latest VMA will provide funding for environmental measures including maintenance of an existing quiet zone, operations mitigation, emergency response training, safety initiatives, and improved communication. CN completed its EJ&E acquisition on Jan. 31, 2009, and, while traffic volumes overall remain down owing

CN Locomotive Engineers’ Strike to End Immediately

December 2, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

MONTREAL — The strike by locomotive engineers at CN will end immediately as a result of an agreement to resolve the parties’ contractual disagreements through further negotiations and, if necessary, binding arbitration. The union began its strike Nov. 28. E. Hunter Harrison, president and chief executive officer, said: “CN is pleased that an agreement has been reached to end the strike by the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) immediately and to move forward with a process that gives the parties flexibility to negotiate issues further, but also ensures finality through binding arbitration of issues that remain in dispute. We have always sought, since starting negotiations 14 months ago, to achieve

CN Makes New Offer to Union in Canada

December 1, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

MONTREAL — CN has made a new offer to the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), hoping the effort will break the impasse and end a strike. CN said it has not seen substantive movement by the union to end the locomotive engineers’ strike that started Nov. 28, 2009. “Unfortunately, the union persists in raising the same issues the parties have negotiated for 14 months,” the railroad said in a statement. In a good faith effort to reach a settlement, CN is offering to: — Agree to binding arbitration on wage and benefit issues — Roll-back the 4,300-mile monthly cap for locomotive engineers to 3,800 miles, on the condition that the

CN Engineers in Canada Striking

November 28, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

MONTREAL –CN engineers in Canada started striking after negotiations between the railroad and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) ended Nov. 27 without an agreement on a new labor contract. Locomotive engineers will remain on the job in the following CN territories because of separate collective agreements: northern Alberta, parts of northern and eastern Ontario, northern Quebec, and parts of eastern Quebec and New Brunswick, the railroad previously said. On Nov. 23, CN notified the TCRC of its intention to implement only one work rule change to the collective agreements and increase wages by 1.5 percent effective Nov. 28. CN said it decided to invoke these contractual changes to move

Talks Between CN, Engineers’ Union Break Off

November 27, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

MONTREAL — Negotiations between CN and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) ended this evening, Nov. 27, with no agreement on a new labour contract, the railroad said. CN and the TCRC had resumed negotiations earlier in the day with the assistance of federal mediators in an attempt to reach a settlement. CN now expects the TCRC to strike the company’s Canadian operations. CN said a TCRC strike is particularly unfortunate because CN has repeatedly offered, and the union has refused, to submit the contract disagreements to binding arbitration in order to avoid a labour disruption. In a news release, CN said a strike “at this time is in no

CN Receives Strike Notice

November 26, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

MONTREAL — CN on Nov. 25 received a 72-hour strike notice from the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) of its plan to strike the company at 1 a.m. on Nov. 28. CN said the TCRC’s decision is unfortunate because a strike is in no one’s interest – not the locomotive engineers, CN’s other employees, its customers or the Canadian economy. CN is urging the TCRC to resume negotiations immediately to reach a settlement. If that is not possible, CN believes the union should agree to submit issues in dispute to binding arbitration before the Nov. 28 strike deadline. Such an approach is fully consistent with the TCRC’s agreement to binding

CN to Implement Wage increase and Aligned Mileage Caps for Locomotive Engineers in Canada

November 23, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire

MONTREAL — CN gave the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) notice of its plan to increase wage rates and apply a change to the mileage caps for the company’s locomotive engineers the union represents in Canada on CN. CN is taking the step after collective bargaining with the TCRC ended Nov. 20 without a settlement, the railroad said. The contract changes are to take effect 0001 hours Nov. 28. The TCRC’s current labor agreement with CN expired Dec. 31, 2008. CN had informed the union over the weekend of its intention to increase the engineers’ wages by 1.5 percent and implement only one work rule change. Today, TCRC-represented conductors have